Inside intense Rangers camp at St George's Park from Russell Martin's 'principles' to three standout youngsters

Daily Record

a day ago

The squad are back in Glasgow after a week at the facility used by the England national team
The weary Ibrox squad are catching a breath after a gruelling week being put through their paces by Russell Martin.
But as well as hitting peak fitness, the new Rangers boss hopes his men have also now grasped how to make the ball do the hard work for them.
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The Light Blues are back in Glasgow having spent the past few days topping up their stamina levels at their plush St George's Park digs.
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There were double sessions and long, draining runs for the team at the £80million training base used by Thomas Tuchel's England side as Martin oversaw an exhausting pre-season workout schedule designed to push his players to their limit ahead of the new campaign.
High-level conditioning is a key requirement for the ultra-aggressive, possession-heavy game plan the former Southampton gaffer is hoping to implement at Ibrox.
But Martin is convinced that the fundamental principles he's drummed into his team this past week will see their labours bear fruit.
He said: 'I think it's all about habits. The first couple of weeks have all been about instilling some good habits and some principles that are going to be, are going to be so important, always important, whatever formation we play.
'Whether it's the first minute, the last minute, we're home, we're away, playing in Europe or the league.
'So I think it's been about trying to instil some good habits and make sure that does become a habit for us. I think you need a plan with the ball and everything needs to have a why.
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'The lads are really understanding that purpose.
'There'll be times for us to play really quickly and really aggressively. There'll be times for us to be patient — but NEVER slow.
'It's about being calm but quick. And the ball has to travel quick because the ball travels faster than any player can.
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'So I think they're starting to really understand that now. The more games we play, the more feeling I have of they know when to change the rhythm of the game.
'But the ball has to travel all the time. It can't just be stationary. Even if they are having to wait in their positions a little bit at times, the ball needs to travel so quick.'
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The early sessions under the new Ibrox boss have been just as taxing mentally for the players as they have been physically tiring.
Martin has had to overload his squad with information as he attempts to get them attuned to his way of thinking.
The precise movements he wants his players to make off the ball are designed to open up the space that will be key if Gers are to puncture the packed defences they will be coming up against the majority of the time in Premiership action.
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The small band of travelling media who followed Rangers south to last week's camp near Burton saw how the new boss spent a good 20 minutes walking kid defender Zander Hutton through a scenario where he was receiving a pass from his centre-back under pressure.
The exercise was designed to show the 18-year-old when to drive inside and when to hang wide - and critically when to spot which was the right option.
'I think if we can convince someone, they have to understand why they're doing it and what the benefit is to them individually, in their unit, as a group, as a team,' explained Martin.
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'Myself included, if I try and explain to the players they're not happy with it and they find a better solution, as long as they explain to me why it's better for them, then we can always come to a good conclusion.
'So at the minute it's a bit of a monologue. I'm talking a lot to them. Us as staff are talking a lot at them and to them with detail.
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'And eventually it becomes a big dialogue and I think that'll be really important.
'But right now they just have to understand this is why we're doing it. Hopefully we give them that clarity and then after that we'll find some more solutions together.'
With so many of his new faces arriving late, Martin has been forced to throw a handful of the club's youngsters into squad the equation.
But he's been impressed by the standard of the Auchenhowie kids. Asked who had impressed him, he said: 'A few of the young guys. Josh Gentles is a great, really outstanding young player, but physically has a lot of work to do because he's only 17.
'Zander Hutton is a great kid, willing to learn. Finlay Curtis has been really outstanding. I don't want to put too much pressure on these guys because they're so young, but they've been really, really good. I've been really impressed with them.'